Quiet please!

Studying for finals at any level is a comprehensive activity that requires the utmost concentration. However, I am baffled as to why this type of studious atmosphere is difficult to maintain in GW computer facilities.

I always have been impressed with the facilities themselves. They are clean, well-structured and a valuable component of the GW academic experience. It is a difficult task to ensure the integrity of the computer system and, for the most part, computers have been readily available during finals week – the busiest time of the semester.

Unfortunately, unmitigated focus has been rarely possible in most computer labs during this intense period. Some labs, especially in the Gelman basement and upstairs in Rome Hall, have been marred by excess noise and a lack of respect for the work of other students. Discussion of issues is an integral part of many academic endeavors. Nonetheless, it is essential that these conversations take place in appropriate forums and not at the expense of others trying to convey their thoughts and research onto paper.

I realize that grads and undergrads have different concerns and delineated levels of academic attention. It is a shame when graduate students, some who work full time, are unable to give serious consideration to writing and research because of frivolous academic conditions.

There is a strong possibility that most graduate students have purchased their own computers and are therefore not core constituents of GW computer facilities. This does not excuse, however, any discounting of our use of these technological resources. It is my sincere hope that a dialogue can be started with the administration to address the distinct needs of graduate students in the area of computer facilities.

-Andrew Hoffman graduate student

Humor vs. privacy

I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with the decision to print “Rob Tells All the World About His Romantic Life’s Trail of Tears” in the Dec. 4 issue of The GW Hatchet p. 5. Rob Hertzfeldt’s column is about his failed relationship attempts at GW.

Mr. Hertzfeldt shows little regard for the privacy and respect of those women mentioned in the column. They were objectified in his overtly sexual depictions. He did not have consent to print my name. Further, I would be extremely surprised if he received consent from any other woman named in the article.

I firmly believe that every person has a right to express their opinion and that The Hatchet is a proper forum to do so. However, I would hope that The Hatchet would show a greater sense of judgment when preserving the integrity of the op-ed section. This limited resource should be saved for opinions on relevant topics to GW concerns.

Mr. Hertzfeldt’s published opinion is inappropriate and offensive. GW is our home community and one should not have to open up the paper and see their private lives exposed. The Hatchet should not be used as a forum to express personal gripes. Editors have the primary responsibility in taking reasonable action to ensure that members of the GW community have a certain zone of privacy.

In the future, I hope the editors will consider the feelings of those who open The Hatchet and find their lives on display.

-Amanda Chorowskisenior

GW priorities

It sounds as though we are going to come to a decision about this year’s Commencement ceremonies. I want to make one more plea to the committee.

In a recent GW Hatchet article about the ordeal (“Committee to vote on Commencement,” Jan. 12, p.1), GW’s special events director Lynn Shipway offers hard numbers as to what the Commencement ceremony will cost and the discrepancies between the money allotted for it, the money needed for a ceremony on the Ellipse and the money needed for the MCI Center.

But what she neglects to mention is the idea that we can scrape the necessary money together. George Washington University is a multimillion dollar operation. A few thousand dollars should not be that hard to find.

With the overwhelming outcry of the student body, this University must place a high priority to having Commencement on the Ellipse. It is what the students want. We didn’t want more heads of our namesake. We didn’t want flashy gates to cement walkways. We didn’t want a damn hippo. What we want is to graduate, as promised, in the shadow of the White House.

-Brandon Thomassenior